China Justice Observer

中司观察

EnglishArabicChinese (Simplified)DutchFrenchGermanHindiItalianJapaneseKoreanPortugueseRussianSpanishSwedishHebrewIndonesianVietnameseThaiTurkishMalay

China Cracks Down Malicious Trademark Registration

Fri, 09 Apr 2021
Categories: China Legal Trends

China National Intellectual Property Administration (“CNIPA”) on Mar. 24 released a circular, the Plan for the Special Campaign against Malicious Trademark Registration (the Plan, 打击商标恶意抢注行为专项行动方案) on its official website, deciding to launch a special campaign to crack down on malicious trademark registration as of Mar. 2021.

The Plan makes it clear that the special campaign focuses on cracking down on the misconducts such as malicious trademark registration, the attempt to gain improper profits, which disturb the order of trademark registration administration and cause relatively adverse social influence arising therefrom. The Plan also enumerates the acts of malicious trademark registration in nine aspects, including “malicious rush registration of titles or names of national or regional strategies, major events, major policies, major projects, and major scientific and technological projects”.

In accordance with the Plan, in the special campaign, legal punishment, administrative guidance, credit constraint and other measures will be comprehensively applied, including (1) promoting the inclusion of records concerned with administrative penalties for malicious trademark registration into the national public credit information catalog and credit archives in accordance with the laws and regulations; (2) intensifying its crackdown on malicious trademark registration conducted by trademark agencies, and for example, in view of the serious circumstances of their acts, the intellectual property office will submit a request to stop accepting their trademark registration application, and so on.

 

Contributors: CJO Staff Contributors Team

Save as PDF

You might also like

SPP Releases Guiding Cases on Civil Adjudication Supervision

In March 2025, China’s Supreme People’s Procuratorate (SPP) released new guiding cases to strengthen supervision over civil judgments, ensuring fairness and correcting errors in court rulings, covering disputes like private loans and traffic accidents.

First Tort Suit Under China’s Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law

In March 2025, China’s Supreme People’s Court (SPC) reported the first-ever tort suit under the Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law, enabling a Chinese firm to recover over CNY 84 million after a European partner withheld payment invoking a third country’s sanctions.

ABLI-HCCH webinar: Cross-Border Commercial Dispute Resolution – Electronic Service of Documents and Remote Taking of Evidence (July 10, 2025)

The Asian Business Law Institute (ABLI) and the Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH) will host their fourth joint webinar on July 10, 2024 (5:00–6:10 PM SGT), focusing on electronic service of documents and remote taking of evidence under the Service and Evidence Conventions, featuring expert speakers, with an early bird discount available until June 10.

China Tightens Corporate Personal Data Audit Rules

In February 2025, China's Cyberspace Administration issued the "Measures for the Administration of Personal Information Protection Compliance Audits", effective May 1, 2025, mandating regular audits for companies, especially those processing data of over 10 million individuals, to ensure transparency and legality in personal data handling.

SPC Releases Typical Cases on Telecom Fraud Crimes

In February 2025, China's Supreme People's Court (SPC) released eight typical telecom fraud cases, exposing new criminal methods and highlighting intensified judicial efforts after handling 31,000 such cases in 2023.

SPC Targets Cyber Extortion with Typical Cases

In February 2025, China’s Supreme People’s Court (SPC) released six typical cases showcasing its crackdown on emerging cyber extortion crimes, including spreading rumors and sextortion, to encourage victims to seek legal protection.

China Issues New Rules on Foreign-Related IP Disputes

In March 2025, China issued regulations effective May 1, 2025, to enhance dispute resolution, evidence collection, and countermeasures for foreign-related intellectual property disputes, strengthening services and enterprise capabilities.

SPC Issues China’s First Anti-Anti-Suit Injunction (AASI) in IP Case

In December 2024, China’s Supreme People’s Court (SPC) issued its first anti-anti-suit injunction in a patent dispute, Huawei v. Netgear, prohibiting Netgear from obstructing Huawei’s Chinese litigation, marking a significant step in global standard-essential patent governance.